Management of advanced heart failure

Congestive heart failure (CHF) due to progressive systolic dysfunction has become a modern-day epidemic. Despite the increased incidence and prevalence, significant progress has been made in the past 10 to 15 years in the treatment of CHF at all stages. The current outlook for patients with newly diagnosed, mild heart failure is encouraging. It should be noted, however, that most of the morbidity and health care expenditure is incurred by a minority of patients diagnosed with CHF who are in the advanced stages of their disease. The thrust of this article will be to provide practical advice beyond current guidelines on the management of advanced CHF.